Planet of the Nerds, Vol. 1

This uneven send-up of 1980s teen comedies kicks off from a clever premise: three stereotypical ’80s jocks are propelled into the year 2019, where geeks are wealthy and powerful, bullying is criminalized, and Earth has become a planet of the nerds. Chad, Steve, and Drew are picking on their dorky classmate Alvin in his makeshift lab when an accident sends the trio forward in time and into the middle of a comic book convention. Meanwhile, Alvin has grown up into a villainous tech millionaire. Most of the humor, predictably, comes from the culture clash: “Prince and George Michael are dead! Everyone’s allergic to bread and peanut butter for some reason! Everything is wrong!” Despite their misgivings about the darker side of life in the 21st century (“Nazis are back? Like, actual Nazis?”), some of the jocks adapt to the new status quo, discovering opportunities to be themselves in an era less hung up on macho conformity. Unfortunately, the plot is scattershot; Constant comes across as a smart writer, but his inexperience in pacing a plot and scripting for the comics medium shows. The old-school comic book art, all stiff, exaggerated poses and awkward faces, is unlovely but arguably appropriate for a 1980s pastiche. The series launches from a catchy concept, but the moments of fun nostalgia and promise never quite gel into a satisfactory story. [em](Oct.) [/em]